Letter: People are being failed by lack of funding for mental health strategy - when Stormont delays action, people die
A letter from Renee Quinn:
Five years into a 10-year mental health strategy, only 16% of that strategy has been funded.
That is not a technical failure. It is a moral one. In 2024, there were 290 registered deaths by suicide in Northern Ireland, a 31% increase on the previous year.
These were not inevitable deaths. They were preventable. And every delay in delivering fully funded mental health services carries a human cost.
Families across NI are already living with the consequences of inaction. Frontline services are stretched to breaking point.
In this context, the announcement of an all-party group inquiry into suicide prevention funding should give pause. Not because scrutiny is unwelcome, but because the evidence already exists.
Clinicians, charities, families, independent reviews, and coroners have been warning for years that underfunding costs lives.
Announcing another inquiry without guaranteed funding or clear timelines is not progress, it is a political choice to delay.
Every month spent re-examining what is already known carries a human cost. Every month without funding leaves people in crisis without support. When government delays action on suicide, people die.
Communities are not asking for more reports – they are asking for action.
We have written to all MLAs setting out these concerns and asking for clear commitments on funding and timelines. We now await their response.
The NI Executive must act now. Full funding of the mental health strategy must be delivered immediately, with clear timelines and measurable milestones. Anything less is a failure of responsibility.
Renee Quinn, PIPS Suicide Prevention Ireland Charity CEO